Summary
The Director, Patient Services owns the end-to-end strategy, governance, and operational delivery of patient support services that enable patients to start and remain on therapy. Operating in alignment with Therapeutic area (TA) / Brand strategy and objectives. This role ensures patient services are compliant, tailored to local patient needs, performance-driven, and operationally excellent.
The position is reporting to the Head Patient Experience and Activation.
About the Role
Key Responsibilities:
Patient Services Governance & Compliance
- Owns Patient Services strategy aligned to TA/Brand objectives and patient needs, with accountability for service portfolio governance and lifecycle management.
- Ensures all patient services operate in full alignment with compliance, regulatory, medical, and quality standards.
Operational Excellence & Program Delivery
- Drives end-to-end execution of Patient Services programs, ensuring operational readiness, consistency, and reliability across markets and vendors while proactively identifying and mitigating operational and delivery risks.
Performance Management
- Responsible for Patient Services performance management, defining and tracking KPIs including time to treatment initiation, adherence and persistence, as well as service utilization and drop-off.
- Translates performance insights into targeted service optimization and continuous improvement to strengthen patient impact.
Systems & Stakeholder Collaboration
- Acts as the primary liaison with ONE Patient Support Program (PSP) CRM and other patient solutions to ensure seamless service integration, data quality, and operational effectiveness.
- Partners closely with TA, Data Analytics and Platforms, Patient Experience & Activation, ERC, Medical and Access to drive aligned execution.
Essential Requirements:
- 10+ years of experience in Patient Services, Patient Support Programs, Medical Operations, or related roles within pharmaceutical, biotech, or specialty care environments
- Demonstrated experience designing, governing, and delivering patient service programs aligned to TA/Brand strategies
- Strong knowledge of regulatory, compliance, medical, and quality requirements impacting patient services tools and PSPs.
- Proven experience managing service performance through KPIs
- Experience leading cross-functional collaboration in matrixed organizations
- Strong operational leadership skills, including vendor management and oversight of external service partners
- Proficient English, both written and spoken.
Desirable Requirements:
- Demonstrated leadership of complex Patient Services or PSP transformations, including launching or redesigning programs across markets while maintaining high performance, quality, and patient impact
- Proven ability to lead in highly regulated environments, with hands-on experience navigating compliance, medical, and quality governance while driving operational excellence and measurable outcomes.
Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:
Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams representative of the patients and communities we serve.
Why Novartis: Helping people with disease and their families takes more than innovative science. It takes a community of smart, passionate people like you. Collaborating, supporting and inspiring each other. Combining to achieve breakthroughs that change patients’ lives. Ready to create a brighter future together? https://www.novartis.com/about/strategy/people-and-culture
Benefits and Rewards: Learn about all the ways we’ll help you thrive personally and professionally.
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